Source device change using a wireless home entertainment hub

ABSTRACT

A method of registering a device with a wireless home entertainment hub in a home entertainment system includes broadcasting by a wireless home entertainment hub a request for a reply from at least one unregistered device. The reply is received from at least one of the unregistered devices and a list of the at least one unregistered device is presented to a user for the purpose of the user selecting a device to register. An indication of the registration of the device selected by the user for registration is stored, and the selected device is removed from the list of unregistered devices after the indication of the registration is stored.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/470,862, entitled Data Presentation Using a Wireless HomeEntertainment Hub, filed Sep. 7, 2006, the entire disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference.

This application is related to co-pending U.S. patent application Ser.No. 11/535,211, entitled Device Registration using a Wireless HomeEntertainment Hub, filed Sep. 26, 2006, U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/535,216, entitled User Directed Device Registration using a WirelessHome Entertainment Hub, filed Sep. 26, 2006, U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/470,872, entitled Control of Data Presentation using aWireless Home Entertainment Hub, filed Sep. 7, 2006, U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/470,879, entitled Data Presentation fromMultiple Sources using a Wireless Home Entertainment Hub, filed Sep. 7,2006, and U.S. application Ser. No. 11/470,895, entitled Control of DataPresentation from Multiple Sources using a Wireless Home EntertainmentHub, filed Sep. 7, 2006, the entire disclosures of which areincorporated herein by reference.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following detailed description will be better understood when readin conjunction with the appended drawings, in which there is shown oneor more of the multiple embodiments of the present invention. It shouldbe understood, however, that the various embodiments of the presentinvention are not limited to the precise arrangements andinstrumentalities shown in the drawings.

In the Drawings:

FIG. 1 is a system diagram of a home entertainment system according toone embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a use-case diagram of a wireless home entertainment hub inaccordance with the home entertainment system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram of user-initiated automatic registration inaccordance with the home entertainment system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram of manual device registration in accordancewith the home entertainment system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram of source activation in accordance with thehome entertainment system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram of direct source to sink transmission ofdata within the home entertainment system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram of transmission of data directed by thewireless home entertainment hub within the home entertainment system ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram of operation of a remote control inaccordance with the wireless home entertainment system of FIG. 1;

Fig. 9 is a system diagram of an audio/visual receiver used to connectspeakers to the wireless home entertainment hub of FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a system diagram of a home theatre network interface box usedto connect legacy devices to the wireless home entertainment hub of FIG.1; and

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of the wireless home entertainment hub inaccordance with the home entertainment system of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Certain terminology is used herein for convenience only and is not to betaken as a limitation on the embodiments of the present invention. Inthe drawings, the same reference letters are employed for designatingthe same elements throughout the several figures.

The words “right”, “left”, “lower” and “upper” designate directions inthe drawings to which reference is made. The words “inwardly” and“outwardly” refer to directions toward and away from, respectively, thegeometric center of the home entertainment system and designated partsthereof. The terminology includes the words above specificallymentioned, derivatives thereof and words of similar import.

Unified Modeling Language (“UML”) can be used to model and/or describemethods and systems and provide the basis for better understanding theirfunctionality and internal operation as well as describing interfaceswith external components, systems and people using standardizednotation. When used herein, UML diagrams including, but not limited to,use case diagrams, class diagrams and activity diagrams, are meant toserve as an aid in describing tie embodiments of the present invention,but do not constrain implementation thereof to any particular hardwareor software embodiments. Unless otherwise noted, the notation used withrespect to the UML diagrams contained herein is consistent with the UML2.0 specification or variants thereof and is understood by those skilledin the art.

An exemplary home entertainment system (HES) 100 including wirelesslyconnected devices in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention is shown in FIG. 1. Interactions between the various wirelessdevices in the HES 100 and a user 120 are coordinated by a wireless homeentertainment hub (WHEH) 102. It is understood by those skilled in theart that a wireless device in the HES 100 may contain an external wirefor the purpose of supplying power to the wireless device.

Referring generally to FIGS. 1 and 2, devices in the HES 100 can broadlybe classified into two categories: source devices 122 and sink devices124. Source devices 122 transmit data within the HES 100. Source devices122 include, but are not limited to, DVD players 104, digital videorecorders (DVR) (not shown), set-top boxes (STB) 106 (e.g., cable orsatellite channel tuners), gaming consoles 108 (e.g. Xbox®,PlayStation®), CD players or other audio playback devices (e.g., MP3player) (not shown). It is understood by those skilled in the art thatexternal data can be introduced into the HES 100 for transmission by oneor more of the source devices 122 by various means, such as opticalfiber, co-axial cable, or a satellite dish system connected to the STB106. Sink devices 124 receive the transmitted data within the HES 100,sometimes converting a signal into an audible or visible stimulus. Sinkdevices 124 include, but are not limited to, speakers 110, audio/visualreceivers (AVR) 145 (see FIG. 9), and display devices 112 such as anHDTV or other television, monitor, or display screen or mechanism.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that a PC 114 can act as asource device 122 and/or a sink device 124 within the HES 100. The PC114 can act as an audio and/or a video source transmitting data from,for example, a CD, DVD, stored music and video media, or data accessedfrom the Internet. The PC 114 can also act as a sink device 124displaying video and audio data from, for example, the DVD player 104 orSTB 106.

The HES 100 may also utilize a remote control 118 and a calibrationdevice 116, discussed in greater detail below.

The WHEH 102 facilitates the transfer of data between the source andsink devices in the HES 100, as well as coordinates the interactionbetween the user 120 and the source and sink devices 122, 124. Forexample, referring to FIG. 2, the WHEH 102 may perform a registerdevices use-case, change source use-case, direct audio and video signaluse-case, program remote use-case, control volume use-case, andcalibrate system use-case, which are described in more detail below.Within the HES 100, the WHEH 102 controls the flow of data, informationand other “traffic” by recognizing the devices within the HES 100,tracking their current status (e.g., active, standby, etc.), directingthe transfer of data between devices, etc. In addition, the WHEH 102provides a central controller for the HES 100 that allows a user 120 tooperate tie HES 100 in an efficient manner through interaction with theWHEH 102, which then subsequently provides instructions to the otherdevices in the HES 100 to perform the function requested by the user120. Such interactions with the WHEH 102 by the user may be performedthrough with a visual user interface presented on the screen of thedisplay device 112. Alternately, the remote control 118 may include adisplay screen, such as an LCD, to present the user with a visualinterface to the WHEH 102.

Referring to FIG. 11, the WHEH 102 includes one or more wirelesstransmitters 206 and receivers 204, or combined transmitter/receiver(i.e., transceiver) units to facilitate the wireless transfer of databetween the source and sink devices 122, 124 using wirelesscommunication standards described below, a memory 202 for storing dataand other information generally used in the operation of the HES 100,and a processor 200 for executing the instruction sets for the functionsperformed by the WHEH 102, including the use-cases listed above. TheWHEH 102 may exist as a standalone unit or it may be integrated intoanother device. For example, the WHEH may be included in the displaydevice 112 or the remote control 118. One skilled in the art willrecognize that the WHEH 102 can act as a source device 122 and/or a sinkdevice 124 in the HES 100. For example, the WHEH 102 may receive data(i.e., acts as a sink unit) from a source unit currently transmittingdata in the HES 100, and process and transmit that data (i.e., acts as asource unit) to other sink devices in the HES 100 for presentation to auser 120.

Ultra-wide band technology (UWB) utilizing orthogonal frequency divisionmultiplexing (OFDM) or a direct sequence communication system may beused for the wireless communication between the WHEH 102 and the sourceand sink devices 122, 124 in the HES 100. Those skilled in the art willrecognize that a number of other wireless commutation standards,including Bluetooth and various WiFi standards, can be used withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of multiple embodiments of tiepresent invention for transfer of data between devices within the HES100. In one embodiment, more than one wireless standard may be utilizedwithin the HES 100 to facilitate data transfer between the devices. Forexample, the WHEH 102 and source and sink devices 122, 124 may eachcontain a UWB transceiver for transfer of audio and/or video data and aWiFi transceiver for transferring operation instructions.

Referring generally to FIGS. 2-4, audio and video devices in the HES 100can be registered with the WHEH 102. The registration creates a uniqueassociation between devices and the WHEH 102 such that registereddevices belonging to the HES 100 are controlled by WHEH 102, and cannotsimultaneously be registered with a different home entertainment systemor another wireless home entertainment hub operating in a nearbyproximity, such as in a neighboring apartment or household.

User-Initiated Automatic Registration

Referring to FIG. 3, the user 120 initiates the registration procedure.The WHEH 102 sends a request for any unregistered device to respond. TheWHEH 102 request may include a unique identifier for the WHEH 1027 suchas an WHEH ID number. A device response includes a unique deviceidentifier, such as a device ID number. A list of responding devices ispresented to the user 120, and the user 120 selects the device that isto be registered with WHEH 102. The WHEH 102 sends a registrationinstruction to the selected device and the registration is stored onboth the device and the WHEH 102, Once a registration has beenestablished, the device is removed from the list, and the registrationprocess is repeated for the remaining unregistered devices within theHES 100 that have responded to the WHEH 102.

In an alternate embodiment, the registration procedure is accomplishedautomatically between the WHEH 102 and unregistered devices. Forexample, the WHEH 102 may periodically broadcast a request for anyunregistered devices to report. In addition to replying with the deviceID number, an unregistered device can respond with a list of itscapabilities so that the WHEH 102 can determine the functionality of thedevice (i.e., if it is a DVD player, DVR, STB, etc.) before sending aregistration instruction. Alternately, the unregistered device canrespond with its make and model number from which the WHEH 102 candetermine the functionality of the device using an internal database ofdevices and also obtain any necessary command codes for the device,

Alternatively, the user 120 may initiate the broadcast for unregisteredsources instead of having the WHEH 102 perform a periodic broadcast forunregistered sources. For example, when a user 120 adds a new componentor device to the HES 100, a request to find unregistered sources may beinitiated, such that once the request is initiated, the remainingregistration procedure proceeds automatically as discussed above.

In an alternate embodiment, the WHEH 102 may automatically recognize andregister all devices in tie HES 100. For example, a user 120 maypurchase a set of coordinated devices for wireless HES 100 including,for example, a display, set of multi-channel speakers, a DVD player 104,and a WHEH 102 (which may be a discreet device or contained in one ofthe system devices, such as the display or remote control). Each ofthese coordinated devices may contain a coordinated ID that isrecognizable by the WHEH 102. Additionally, the speakers may be labeledwith their intended position within the HES 100 (e.g., front left,middle right) to aid the user 120 in their correct placement. Uponplacement and power-up, without any additional actions by the user 120,the WHEH 102 automatically registers the coordinated devices based ontheir coordinated ID's that have been set by the device manufacturer.

The wireless HES 100 may perform an error checking during theregistration of the source and sink devices to make sure that the devicebeing registered matches the type of device being requested forregistration. The WHEH 102 can compare the list of capabilities receivedfrom the device during the registration with a list of expectedcapabilities stored in the WHEH 102. If the capabilities in the devicereply match the expected capabilities of the WHEH 102, an indication ofthe registration is stored in the WHEH 102 and the device. If thecapabilities and expected capabilities do not match, the registration isnot stored and may be re-initiated.

Manual Registration

The registration may also be performed manually by the user 120 (seeFIG. 4). The user 120 initiates a registration procedure by pressing aregistration actuator on the WHEH 102. Examples of actuators includebuttons, touch pads, touch screens, or any other actuating assemblyrecognized by those skilled in the art. The user 120 presses aregistration actuator on a selected source unit which sends a signal tothe WHEH 102 that a registration should be stored with this unit. If theWHEH 102 is unable to determine the functionality of the source (e.g.,DVR, DVD, etc), the user 120 may manually assign the functionality oftie source to complete the registration. For example, if the user 120selects the registration actuators on the WHEH 102 and the DVD player104, the WHEH 102 may cause “DVD registered” to be displayed if theselected source is recognized as a DVD player 104 by the WHEH 102. Ifthe selected source is not recognized, the WHEH 102 may prompt the user120 to select the type of source device from a list. Thus, in this case,the user 120 may select “DVD” in order to complete the registration.This process is repeated until all the unregistered sources have beenregistered with the WHEH 102, or similarly if a new source is added intoan existing system. In other embodiments, the user 120 may initiateregistration from a source device 122, a sink device 124, a remotecontrol 118, or over a network.

Multi-Instance Device Registration

For device types where multiple instances of the device exist within thesystem 100 (e.g., speakers 110), a number of approaches can be used toidentify each device's specific role. For speakers 110, the role of eachspeaker can be pre-identified by the manufacturer (e.g., “front-right”,“subwoofer”, etc.). The user-initiated automatic registration proceduredescribed above could be used to register the speakers 110 with the WHEH102 since the speaker 110 could identify itself for example, as thefront left speaker, during the registration process. Alternatively, eachspeaker 110 could have a physical input that the user 120 could set toindicate the speaker's role (e.g. “front-left”, “back-right-surround”).In another embodiment, the WHEH 102 could use one or more microphoneswithin the HES 100 to elicit position and frequency responseinformation, or the HES 100 could use other position detectiontechnologies understood by those skilled in the art.

In another embodiment, each speaker 110 could have a registrationactuator to be activated in response to a WHEH 102 prompt for a speakerplaying a specific role. For instance, the WHEH 102 could prompt theuser 120 for the front-left speaker and the user 120 could activate theregistration actuator. Alternately, the user 120 may initiate theregistration procedure by activating a registration actuator on the WHEH102. The user 120 then presses a registration actuator on a speaker 110and identifies the functionality of that speaker 110 within the audiosystem 100. For example, at the time of registration, the user 120identifies the selected speaker as the left front, the repeats for rightfront, continuing until all the speakers 110 have been identified andregistered. In one embodiment, the WHEH 102 may prompt the user 120 witha list or graphic display of speaker positions available. The user 120first selects the speaker 110 to be registered and then presses theregistration actuator on the selected speaker. In an alternateembodiment, the WHEH 102 may first prompt the user 120 to enter thenumber of speakers to be registered with the WHEH 102 and then selectthe appropriate speaker configuration to match. For example, if onlyfour speakers 110 are selected, the WHEH 102 would not present the user120 with a Dolby® Digital 7.1 speaker configuration, but a four speakerlist of left and right front, and left and right rear.

Source Selection

Referring generally to FIGS. 2, 5-7, in addition to coordinating theregistration of device within the HES 100 as described above, the WHEH102 is also used to coordinate and/or control the state of the sourceand sink devices and the transfer of data from the source devices tosink devices during typical operation of the HES 100. Device states(also referred to as modes) may include “on”, “off”, “active”, “lowpower”, “standby”, etc. Data may include instructions, audio/videoprogramming, or any other information generally passed between or amongsource/silk devices. Some examples of typical operations that are commonin the general utilization of the HES 100 by the user 120 are a requestor action by the user 120 to activate a source (e.g., start watchingprogramming from a cable broadcast) or initiate a change from one sourcedevice to another (e.g., discontinue watching programming from a cablebroadcast to watching a movie on the DVD player). The request toactivate a source device or to change from one source device to anothercan be accomplished in a several ways. The user may initiate the actionthough the use of the remote control 118, or interact directly with asource device. For example, when a user inserts a DVD into the DVDplayer 104, it automatically causes the WHEH 102 to activate the DVDplayer 104 (or initiate a source change as described below if anothersource is already active in the HES 100). In either case, once therequest has been made by the user 120, the WHEH 102 completes theprocess as described below.

FIG. 5. is sequence diagram showing the selection of a source device 122by the WHEH 102 in one embodiment of the HES 100. When a source deviceis activated, it begins transmitting data to the HES 100. Theinstruction to activate also causes an internal reference count withinthe source device to increment by one, where the reference countrepresents the current number of zones (described in more detail below)that are receiving data from the source device For example if the sourcedevice, currently in standby mode, is activated, its reference countincreases to one. After a user 120 initiates a request to change to anew source, the WHEH 102 instructs the current active source device todecrement its internal reference count by one. When the active sourcedevice internal reference count is zero, the source device may stoptransmitting and enter a low power or stand-by mode. If the internalreference count is not zero, the source device continues to transmitsince there are other devices still listening to its transmission. TheWHEH 102 then instructs the newly selected source unit to activate,including increasing its internal reference count by one, and the newlyselected source device begins transmitting data to the HES 100. The sinkdevices may receive the transmitted data directly from the currentactive source or from the WHEH 100, both described below.

Direct Source to Sink Data Transmission

Referring to FIG. 6, after a source activation or change is initiatedwithin the HES 100 as described above, the WHEH 102 broadcasts to allsink units, or those that are relevant, an instruction to discontinuereceiving and transmitting data from the previously active source andbegin receiving the transmitted data from the newly selected source,where the activities in FIG. 6. labeled “transmitVideo( )” and“transmitAudio( )” represent a continuous stream of data from the sourcedevice 122 to the sink devices 124. This instruction from the WHEH 102may be broadcast as a single instruction to all units (i.e., a commoninstruction recognizable by any device in the HES 100) or may be adistinct instruction sent to each of the sink units. Audio and/or videodata from the current active source device is transmitted directly tothe relevant sink devices as instructed by the WHEH 102. For example,the display device 112 and speaker 110 receive and present the videodata and audio data, respectively, from the current active sourcedevice. In one embodiment, tie newly selected source device that hasbeen activated in the HES 100 may transmit one or more instructionsdirectly to the sink units to begin receiving and presenting the datafrom the newly selected source and discontinue presenting the data fromthe previously active source.

Source to Sink Data Transmission Through the WHEH

In an alternate embodiment, the sink units in the HES 100 receive datafrom the wireless home entertainment hub (see FIG. 7). The WHEH 102receives the audio and video data from the current active source deviceand transmits the audio and video data to the appropriate sink unit. Ifa source change is initiated within the HES 100 as described above, thesink units may be unaware of a change of source with the HES 100 sincethey always listen to (i.e., receive data from) the WHEH 102, and notdirectly to the active source device.

In one embodiment, more than one source can be designed as an activesource by the WHEH 102. Data from multiple active sources call besimultaneously presented by the relevant sink devices as described bythe two methods above. The WHEH 102 receives the data from the two ormore active source devices and transmits the data to the relevant sinkdevices. The WHEH 102 may process (e.g., mix) the data from the two ormore source devices before transmitting. Alternately, the WHEH 102 mayinstruct the sink devices to listen to and present data transmitteddirectly from the two or more active sink devices.

Referring to FIG. 8, in one embodiment of the present invention, aremote control 118 is used with the HES 100. The remote control 118receives actuator assignments based on the currently active source inthe HES 100 from the WHEH 102. For example, if the DVD player 104 iscurrently the active source, the actuator assignment on the remotecontrol 118 is for the DVD player 104. When a user 120 activates anactuator on the remote control 118, the actuator selection is sentdirectly to the DVD player 104, which responds with the correspondingactivity for that actuator. If the user 120 initiates a source changethrough the WHEH 102 as described above, (e.g. from the DVD player 104to the set-top tuner), then the WHEH 102 sends a new actuator assignmentto the remote control 118 for the set-top tuner. Actuators activated onthe remote control 118 by a user 120 now cause an activity in theset-top box instead of the DVD player 104. This method of operation ofthe remote control 118 is referred to a “dumb” remote. The functionalityof the actuators on the remote control is controlled by the WHEH 102based on the current active source in the HES 100. The remote does notneed to store any information about past or present states of the HES100 or registration information between the devices in the HES 100.

In an alternate embodiment, a “smart” remote may be used in conjunctionwith the HES 100. The smart remote learns and stores the systemconfiguration, i.e., what source and sink devices are registered withthe WHEH 102. It also learns and stores the current state of the system,i.e., what sources and sinks are active. In addition, the smart remotestores the actuator assignments in an internal memory and may storesystem status information along with device registration information.When a user 120 requests a source change using the remote, the WHEH 102activates the new source as describe above, and the functionality of theremote control 118 is switched to controlling the newly active sourcewithout any input from the WHEH 102 to re-assign the actuators asdescribed in the dumb remote case above. In one embodiment, the WHEH 102may be contained in the smart remote instead of the display device 112.

A handheld mobile device, such as cellular phone or personal digitalassistant, can use appropriate wireless capabilities to communicate witha WHEH 102, obtain information to build and present a user interface,and serve as a remote control 118 for the HES 100. In addition, thecapabilities of the HES 100 may be used to enhance the functionality ofthe handheld mobile device. For example, when a cellular phone is activethe remote control 118, the active display device 112 may displayCallerID information or other information generally presented on thecellular phone display to the user 120 during an incoming telephonecall.

The WHEH 102 may respond to voice commands. A user 120 can perform someor all of the functionality of the remote control 118 by using simpleaudible commands. For example, to change the STB to channel 21, the user120 might say “Channel 21” and the WHEH 102 sends the correspondinginstruction to the STB to complete the channel change, or use thecommand “Volume Up” increase the system volume, where the WHEH 102 sendinstructions to the active sink unit to increase volume.

Power Management

At startup of an entertainment session, a user 120 may direct a power-onmessage to the WHEH 102, via a remote control 118 or perhaps via anactuator on the WHEH 102 or device containing WHEH 102 functionality.The WHEH 102 can then retrieve input from the user 120 regarding thecapabilities required for the session and send activation messages toappropriate devices.

In another embodiment, a source device 122 can send a broadcast messageto the sink devices 124 in the home entertainment network indicatingrequired presentation capabilities. Required devices can activatethemselves and unneeded devices can enter a low-power state. Forexample, all devices in the system are in a lower power mode. The userinserts a DVD into the DVD player 104 which causes the DVD to becomeactive. The WHEH 102 detects the activity of the DVD player 104 andinstructs the display device 112 and speakers 110 to activate.Alternately, the display device 112 and speakers detect the activity ofthe DVD player 104 directly and activate.

In one embodiment, upon indication from the active source device of therequired audio output channels, the WHEH 102 sends signals to the audiosink devices to indicate whether or not they should remain active. Forinstance, upon indication of a Dolby® Digital 2.1 program, the WHEH 102may communicate to the side and rear speakers that they may enter a lowpower mode. Similarly, when an audio-only program is indicated, forexample from the CD player, the WHEH 102 can communicate to the videodisplay device 112 that it may enter a low power non-display state.

Devices in the HES 100 may contain low-powered radios (i.e.,transceivers) that poll for activity or constantly monitor for WHEH 102messages during a low-power device state. Wireless radios conforming tothe “ZigBee” standards can be used in some embodiments. “Bluetooth” or“WiFi” radios can be used in other embodiments. Modes of “UWB” can alsobe used to detect communications during low-power operations.

Volume Control

Volume control, including system muting, can be accomplished in multipleways. In one embodiment, all active audio sink devices may individuallydetect that the remote control 118 has transmitted an instruction tochange the volume. For instance, the eight speakers of a 7.1 surroundsound system each detect a “volume up” instruction transmitted from theremote control 118. Each speaker then increases the gain on its internalamplifier, thereby driving the speaker to higher volume. Alternatively,the WHEH 102 can detect an instruction from the remote control 118requesting a volume change and transmit to all the audio sink devicesone or more instructions to change their volume.

System Calibration

For calibration of the HES 100, a wireless calibration device 116 may beplaced at a typical viewing and/or listening position 121 (e.g., near oron a chair or couch that a user 120 would sit to view the television) ofthe HES 100 by the user 120 (see FIG. 1). For audio calibration, theWHEH 102 could direct a calibration signal to each audio device insequence or in combination, or each audio device could be directed togenerate its own calibration program. A microphone in the wirelesscalibration device 116 monitors the calibration signals from the audiodevices, and can communicate its readings to the WHEH 102 or back to theaudio devices in a point-to-point or broadcast mode. Adjustments couldthen be made to the frequency characteristics, volume, or otherparameters to provide a calibrated home theater environment. Similarly,a wireless light sensitive device could be used to monitor a calibrationsignal from one or more display devices 112 to provide video calibrationof the system. In one embodiment, the microphone and light sensitivedevice may be contained in a single calibration unit. Alternately, themicrophone and light sensitive may be contained in separate calibrationunits. In one embodiment, an actuator on the microphone device couldcause the device to communicate with the hub to initiate the calibrationsequence.

A/V Receiver

Referring to FIG. 9, one or more audio/visual receivers (AVR) 145 oramplifiers can be used to connect the HES 100 to speaker system. Thespeaker system may be wired 140, wireless 142 or a combination thereof.For example, the front speakers 142 in a four speaker system may bewirelessly connected 146 to the AVR 145, while the rear speakers 140 areconnected by a wire 148 to the AVR 145. The AVR 145 is registered withthe WHEH 102 and receives audio data from an active source (not shown)or through the WHEH 102, as described above. The AVR 145 transmits thereceived audio data to the appropriate speakers 140, 142, either throughthe wired connection 148 or by wireless communication 146. It should benoted that if the AVR 145 is configured for use with wireless speakers142, these wireless speakers 142 are not registered with the WHEH 102 asdescribed above and do not receive data from the WHEH 102 or sourcedevices 122 in the HES 100, but instead communicate with the AVR 145using methods understood by those skilled in the art.

Legacy Adaptor

Referring to FIG. 10, a home theatre network interface box (HTNIB) 125may be used to connect “legacy” devices 130 into the HES 100, includingthe WHEH 102. Legacy devices generally include those devices thatrequire hardwire connection for transmission and/or receipt of data andare not wireless enabled (e.g., an analog television connected to aset-top box using coaxial cable). The legacy device is connected to theHTNIB 125 using a hardwire connection 128 (e.g. coaxial cable). TheHTNIB 125 is capable of being registered with the WHEH 102, andrecognized by the WHEH 102 as the legacy device to which it isconnected. The WHEH 102 directs data to and/or from the HTNIB 125 asappropriate to the type of legacy device to which the HTNIB 125 isconnected. The HTNIB 125 passes data to and/or from the connected legacydevice as required by the current configuration of the HES 100. Forexample, if a video cassette recorder (VCR) is connected to the HTNIB125, the WHEH 102 will recognize the NTNIB 125 as a VCR, and when theuser 120 selects the source unit VCR, will instruct the sink devices 124in the HES 100 to listen to the transmission from the NTNIB 125, whichis transmitting the data received from the cable connected to the VCR.One or more HTNIBs 125 could be used in the HES 100 to connect one ormore legacy devices. In one embodiment, a single HTNIB 125 could used toconnect one or more legacy devices to the HES 100, wherein the HTNIB 125contains one or more connections for sink and source devices. Eachconnection can be uniquely registered with the WHEH 102.

Multi-Zone Operation

A single WHEH 102 may provide programming to multiple sets of sinkdevices that are registered with the WHEH 102. The HES 100 may bepartitioned into one or more zones. Each sink device 124 in the HES 100can be assigned to a zone. Zone assignment may be performed at the timeof device registration with the WHEH 102. Zone assignment or changingzone assignments can also be accomplished at any time after deviceregistration. An example of zone partitions within a HES 100 is thatzone 1 includes the display device and 7.1 speaker system in the livingroom; zone 2 includes a display device in the bedroom; zone 3 includesan AVR 145 connected to speakers in the kitchen; and zone 4 includes aPC 114 in the home office. Multi-zone operation allows users 120 indifferent partitions of the HES 100 to received data from differentsource devices 122 registered with the WHEH 102. For instance, the sinkdevices in zone 1 are presenting the program from an HD-DVD, while thespeakers in the kitchen connected to the AVR 145 in zone 3 arepresenting audio from a wireless music storage device that is alsoregistered with the WHEH 102.

In one embodiment, the WHEH 102 can receive an audio source signalcontaining more channels than can be presented in the current HES 100(e.g., the audio signal is configured for a 7.1 system, but theinstalled HES 100 utilizes a 5.1 speaker configuration.) The WHEH 102can process and downmix the audio signal for presentation on theavailable speaker configuration.

Systems using a WHEH 102 can be supplied in a low-security configurationto ease installation by non-technical users. In an embodiment withhigher security, the user 120 can enter a code on one device and confirmthe code on another device or on the user interface. In anotherembodiment, various system components can ship with awareness of uniqueidentifiers of other devices in the system.

The WHEH 102 may be used to wirelessly connect musical devices. Musicalsource devices and musical sink devices can be connected to a mixingboard containing an advanced embodiment of the WHEH 102. Musical sourcedevices include, but are not limited to, musical instruments,microphones, effects systems, and amplifiers. Musical sink devicesinclude by are not limited to speakers, and audio monitors. The mixingboard acts as both a sink unit and source unit, and is a convenientlocation for placement of the WHEH 102. The musical devices are all beregistered with the WHEH 102 similar to the produce procedure describedabove for the HES 100.

The WHEH 102 may detect the specific user or users of the HES 100through RFID, image capture and analysis, or other personalidentification technologies understood by those skilled in the art. Inone embodiment, the remote control 118 may be equipped with afingerprint scanner used for identification of the user 120. Theidentification of the user 120 can be used to control access to variousdevices of the HES 100 based on a set of rules customizable for eachuser of the HES 100 by an authorized user (i.e., parent). For example,access to one or more devices can be denied based on time of day.Similarly, access to certain programming channels can also be deniedbased on a television program rating system, time of day, or selectedchannels. For example, users identified as children may not be allowedaccess to an Xbox® gaming console before 5 PM on weekdays or may not beallowed to view channels showing television programming rated TV-MA(under the US TV Parental Guidelines).

The embodiments of the present invention may be implemented with anycombination of hardware and software. If implemented as acomputer-implemented apparatus, the present invention is implementedusing means for performing all of the steps and functions describedabove.

The embodiments of the present invention can be included in an articleof manufacture (e.g., one or more computer program products) having, forinstance, computer useable media. The media has embodied therein, forinstance, computer readable program code means for providing andfacilitating the mechanisms of the present invention. The article ofmanufacture can be included as part of a computer system or soldseparately.

While specific embodiments have been described in detail in theforegoing detailed description and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art thatvarious modifications and alternatives to those details could bedeveloped in light of the overall teachings of the disclosure and thebroad inventive concepts thereof. It is understood, therefore, that thescope of the present invention is not limited to the particular examplesand implementations disclosed herein, but is intended to covermodifications within the spirit and scope thereof as defined by theappended claims and any and all equivalents thereof.

I claim:
 1. A method of changing, by a wireless home entertainment hubin a home entertainment system, from presentation of first datacorresponding to a first source device to presentation of second datacorresponding to a second source device, wherein the first source deviceis presently transmitting the first data and the first data is beingpresented by one or more of a plurality of sink devices, the methodcomprising: registering a plurality of devices with the wireless homeentertainment hub, the plurality of devices including the first sourcedevice, the second source device, and the one or more plurality of sinkdevices; partitioning the plurality of sink devices into a plurality ofzones by assigning each of the plurality of sink devices to one of theplurality of zones when the respective one of the plurality of sinkdevices is registered with the wireless home entertainment hub; storingby the wireless home entertainment hub indications of the registrationswith each of the plurality of devices; receiving, by the wireless homeentertainment hub, a selection of the second source device;transmitting, by the wireless home entertainment hub, to the secondsource device an instruction to activate, wherein the one or more of theplurality of the sink devices comprises a first sink device in a firstzone changed from presentation of the first data to presentation of thesecond data in response to an activation of the second source device,the first zone comprising a plurality of first zone sink devices;transmitting, by the wireless home entertainment hub, to the firstsource device an instruction to decrement a first reference count upondetermining no first zone sink device is currently presenting the firstdata, wherein the first reference count is an indication of a number ofthe zones receiving the first data from the first source device; andtransmitting, by the wireless home entertainment hub, to the secondsource device an instruction to increment a second reference count upondetermining no first zone sink device other than the first sink deviceis currently presenting the second data, wherein the second referencecount is an indication of a number of zones receiving the second datafrom the second source device.
 2. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: transmitting the second data from the second source deviceto the one or more sink devices for presentation of the second data fromthe second source device.
 3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:receiving, by the wireless home entertainment hub, the second data fromthe second source device; and transmitting, by the wireless homeentertainment hub, the second data to the one or more sink devices forpresentation of the second data.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein thewireless home entertainment hub transmits to each of the one or moresink devices at least part of the second data received from the secondsource device.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first source deviceenters a low power mode when the first reference count indicates nozones are receiving the first data from the first source device.
 6. Themethod of claim 5, wherein no zones are receiving the first data fromthe first source device when the first reference count is zero.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the first and second source devices arewireless devices.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more ofthe plurality of sink devices is a wireless devices.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the changing from the first source device to the secondsource device is initiated by a user based on an instruction received bythe wireless home entertainment hub.
 10. The method of claim 1, whereinthe changing from the first source device to the second source device isinitiated based on action on the second source device by a user.
 11. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the indications of the registrations witheach of the plurality of devices are stored in the respective devices.12. The method of claim 1, wherein registering the plurality of devicesprevents the plurality of devices from registering with a differentwireless home entertainment hub while simultaneously being registeredwith the wireless home entertainment hub.
 13. The method of claim 12,wherein registering the plurality of devices permits exchange of thefirst data and the second data between the plurality of devices and thewireless home entertainment hub, and facilitates direct transfer of thefirst data and the second data between the plurality of devices inresponse to receiving instructions from the wireless home entertainmenthub and without the first data and the second data being received by andre-transmitted from the wireless home entertainment hub.
 14. A method ofchanging, by a wireless home entertainment hub in a home entertainmentsystem, from presentation of first data corresponding to a first sourcedevice to presentation of second data corresponding to a second sourcedevice, wherein the first and second source devices are each registeredwith the wireless home entertainment hub and the first source device ispresently transmitting the first data and the first data is beingpresented by at least one of a plurality of sink devices, the methodcomprising: registering each of the plurality of sink devices with thewireless home entertainment hub; partitioning the plurality of sinkdevices into a plurality of zones by assigning each of the plurality ofsink devices to one of the plurality of zones when the respective one ofthe plurality of sink devices is registered with the wireless homeentertainment hub; storing by each of the plurality of sink devices anindication of the registration with the wireless home entertainment hub;receiving, by a first sink device in a first zone, the first datadirectly from the first source device, the first zone comprising aplurality of first zone sink devices; receiving, by the first sinkdevice, one or more instructions from the wireless home entertainmenthub to receive the second data transmitted from the second source deviceand to discontinue receiving the first data transmitted from the firstsource device; receiving, by the first sink device, the second datadirectly from the second source device, wherein an instruction todecrement a first reference count is transmitted from the wireless homeentertainment hub to the first source device upon determining no firstzone sink device is currently presenting the first data and aninstruction to increment a second reference count is transmitted fromthe wireless home entertainment hub to the second source device upondetermining no first zone sink device other than the first sink deviceis currently presenting the second data, wherein the first referencecount is an indication of a number of the zones receiving the first datafrom the first source device and the second reference count is anindication of a number of the zones receiving the second data from thesecond source device.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the at leastone of the plurality of sink devices includes a plurality of wirelessspeakers for presenting audio data.
 16. The method of claim 14, whereinthe plurality of sink devices includes a display device for displayingvideo data.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the wireless homeentertainment hub is included in the display device.
 18. The method ofclaim 14, wherein the one or more instructions comprises a singleinstruction broadcast to the at least one of the plurality of sinkdevices.
 19. The method of claim 14, wherein the one or moreinstructions comprises a separate instruction transmitted to each of theat least one of the plurality of sink devices.
 20. The method of claim14, wherein the first and second source devices are wireless devices.21. The method of claim 14, wherein the at least one of the plurality ofsink devices is a wireless device.
 22. The method of claim 14, whereinthe indication of the registration is stored in the wireless homeentertainment hub.
 23. The method of claim 14, wherein registering eachof the plurality of sink devices prevents each of the plurality of sinkdevices from registering with a different wireless home entertainmenthub while simultaneously being registered with the wireless homeentertainment hub.
 24. The method of claim 23, wherein registering eachof the plurality of sink devices allows direct transfer of the firstdata and the second data between the plurality of sink devices and thefirst and second source devices, respectively, both registered with thewireless home entertainment hub, in response to receiving instructionsfrom the wireless home entertainment hub and without the first data andthe second data being received by and re-transmitted from the wirelesshome entertainment hub.
 25. A method of changing, by a wireless homeentertainment hub in a home entertainment system, from presentation offirst data corresponding to a first source device to presentation ofsecond data corresponding to a second source device, wherein the firstsource device is presently transmitting the first data and the firstdata is being presented by at least one of a plurality of sink devices,the method comprising: registering each of the plurality of sink devicedevices with the wireless home entertainment hub; partitioning theplurality of sink devices into a plurality of zones by assigning each ofthe plurality of sink devices to one of the plurality of zones when therespective one of the plurality of sink devices is registered with thewireless home entertainment hub; storing by each of the plurality ofsink devices an indication of the registration with the wireless homeentertainment hub; receiving, by a first sink device in a first zone,the first data from the first source device, the first data from thefirst source device being transmitted via the wireless homeentertainment hub, the first zone comprising a plurality of first zonedevices; and receiving, by the first sink device, the second data fromthe second source device, the second data from the second source devicebeing transmitted via the wireless home entertainment hub, wherein thesecond data from the second source device is received by the first sinkdevice after a request for a change from the first source device to thesecond source device is received by the wireless home entertainment hub,an instruction to decrement a first reference count is transmitted fromthe wireless home entertainment hub to the first source device when thesecond data is received by the first sink device and upon determining nofirst zone sink device is currently presenting the first data, whereinthe first reference count is an indication of a number of the zonesreceiving the first data from the first source device, wherein aninstruction to increment a second reference count is transmitted fromthe wireless home entertainment hub to the second source device upondetermining no first zone sink device other than the first sink deviceis currently presenting the second data, wherein the second referencecount is an indication of a number of the zones receiving the seconddata from the second source device.
 26. The method of claim 25, whereinthe at least one of the plurality of sink devices includes a pluralityof wireless speakers for presenting audio data.
 27. The method of claim25, wherein the at least one of the plurality of sink devices includes adisplay device for displaying video data.
 28. The method of claim 27,wherein the wireless home entertainment hub is included in the displaydevice.
 29. The method of claim 25, wherein the request is initiated bya user.
 30. The method of claim 25, wherein the at least one of theplurality of sink devices is a wireless device.
 31. The method of claim25, wherein the indication of the registration is stored in the wirelesshome entertainment hub.
 32. The method of claim 25, wherein registeringeach of the plurality of sink devices prevents each of the plurality ofsink devices from registering with a different wireless homeentertainment hub while simultaneously being registered with thewireless home entertainment hub.
 33. The method of claim 32, whereinregistering each of the plurality of sink devices allows direct transferof the first data and the second data between the plurality of sinkdevices and the first and second source devices, respectively, bothregistered with the wireless home entertainment hub, in response toreceiving instructions from the wireless home entertainment hub andwithout the first data and the second data being received by andre-transmitted from the wireless home entertainment hub.
 34. A wirelesshome entertainment hub to change from presentation of first datacorresponding to a first source device to presentation of second datacorresponding to a second source device in a home entertainment system,wherein the first source device is presently transmitting the first dataand the first data is being presented by at least one of a plurality ofsink devices, the wireless home entertainment hub comprising: a memoryconfigured to store indications of registrations with each of aplurality of devices including the first source device, the secondsource device, and the plurality of sink devices, the memory furtherconfigured to store an indication of the first source device presentlytransmitting data, and a zone assignment for each of the plurality ofsink devices, wherein the zone assignment for each of the plurality ofsink devices indicates one of a plurality of zones to which therespective one of the plurality of sink devices is assigned, wherein afirst zone comprises a plurality of first zone sink devices; a receiverconfigured to receive a selection of the second source device; atransmitter configured to transmit to the second source device aninstruction to activate, wherein a first sink device in the first zonechanges from presentation of the first data to presentation of thesecond date in response to an activation of the second source device;the transmitter further configured to transmit to the first sourcedevice an instruction to decrement a first reference count upondetermining no first zone sink device is currently presenting the firstdata and to transmit to the second source device an instruction toincrement a second reference count upon determining no first zone sinkdevice other than the first sink device is currently presenting thesecond data, wherein the first reference count is a current number ofthe plurality of zones receiving the first data from the first sourcedevice and the second reference count is a current number of theplurality of zones receiving the second data from the second sourcedevice; and a processor configured to facilitate the change frompresentation of the first data to presentation of the second data. 35.The system of claim 34, wherein the wireless home entertainment hub isincluded in a display device.
 36. The system of claim 34, wherein thewireless home entertainment hub is included in a remote control device.37. The wireless home entertainment hub of claim 34, wherein theindications of registrations with each of the plurality of devices arestored in a memory of the respective devices.
 38. The wireless homeentertainment hub of claim 34, wherein the indications of registrationsprevent the plurality of devices from registering with a differentwireless home entertainment hub while simultaneously being registeredwith the wireless home entertainment hub.
 39. A method of changing, by awireless home entertainment hub in a home entertainment system, frompresentation of first data transmitted by a first wireless source deviceto presentation of second data transmitted by a second wireless sourcedevice, wherein the first wireless source device is presentlytransmitting the first data and the first data is being presented by atleast one of a plurality of wireless sink devices, the homeentertainment system including the wireless home entertainment hub and aplurality of wireless devices, the plurality of wireless devicesincluding the first and second wireless source devices and the at leastone of a plurality of wireless sink devices, the method comprising:registering each of the plurality of wireless devices with the wirelesshome entertainment hub, the registration establishing wirelesscommunication between each of the plurality of wireless devices and thewireless home entertainment hub; partitioning the plurality of wirelesssink devices into a plurality of zones by assigning each of theplurality of wireless sink devices to one of the plurality of zones whenthe respective one of the plurality of wireless sink devices isregistered with the wireless home entertainment hub; detecting, by thewireless home entertainment hub, an activation of the second wirelesssource device for the presentation of the second data; transmitting, bythe wireless home entertainment hub, a first instruction to a firstwireless sink device in a first zone to stop receiving the first datafrom the first wireless source device, the first zone comprising aplurality of first zone wireless sink devices; transmitting, by thewireless home entertainment hub, a second instruction to the firstwireless sink device to receive the second data directly from the secondwireless source device; transmitting an indication to the secondwireless source device that the first wireless sink device is ready toreceive the second data; and transmitting, by the wireless homeentertainment hub, to the first wireless source device an instruction todecrement a first reference count upon determining no first zonewireless sink device is currently presenting the first data andtransmitting to the second wireless source device an instruction toincrement a second reference count upon determining no first zonewireless sink device other than the first wireless sink device iscurrently presenting the second data, wherein the first reference countis an indication of a number of the zones receiving the first data fromthe first wireless source device and the second reference count is anindication of a number of zones receiving the second data from thesecond wireless source device, wherein each zone of the plurality ofzones contains at least one of the plurality of wireless sink devices.40. The method of claim 39, wherein an indication of the registrationwith each of the plurality of wireless devices is stored in the wirelesshome entertainment hub and each respective wireless devices, theregistration preventing each of the plurality of wireless devices fromregistering with a different wireless home entertainment hub while beingsimultaneously registered with the wireless home entertainment hub. 41.The method of claim 39, wherein ultra wide band frequencies are utilizedfor the wireless communication between the wireless home entertainmenthub and the plurality of wireless devices.
 42. The method of claim 39,wherein the second wireless source device begins transmitting the seconddata in response to receiving the indication from the wireless homeentertainment hub, and the at least one of the plurality of wirelesssink devices receives the second data directly from the second wirelesssource devices in response to the instruction from the wireless homeentertainment hub.
 43. The method of claim 39, wherein the registrationpermits exchange of the first data and the second data between theplurality of wireless devices and the wireless home entertainment hub,and facilitates direct transfer of the first data and the second databetween the plurality of wireless devices in response to receivinginstructions from the wireless home entertainment hub.
 44. The method ofclaim 39, wherein the first wireless source device enters a low powermode when the first reference count is zero, indicating none of theplurality of wireless sink device devices are presently receiving thefirst data from the first source device.
 45. The method of claim 39,wherein the activation of the second wireless source device is detectedin response to receiving a power on indication from an active sourcedevice based on a direct action of the second source device by a user.